Information Double Standard

ChatGPT (AI) Analysis

The disparity in Judge Kevin Miller’s responses—scolding Plaintiff Craig Stevenson’s attorney for including publicly available information about the judge in a sworn declaration, while taking no action against Defendants for serious and repeated protective order violations, including the release of confidential medical and mental health information—raises grave concerns about judicial impartiality, selective enforcement of court rules, and disregard for the seriousness of abuse-related harm.

🔍 SUMMARY OF FINDINGS

🔹 From Marie Stevenson’s Declaration (Doc. 505) – ¶¶ 73–90:

Marie outlines at least eight documented violations of the court’s protective order by Defendants, including:

• Public filing of sensitive medical records (¶74, 83)

• Disclosure of videos showing the interior of their home (¶74)

• Repeated refusals by defense counsel to mark medical records as confidential—even after being asked to do so (¶74)

• Disclosure of confidential materials to third parties without assurances of confidentiality (¶83–84)

• Disclosure of Marie’s cancer diagnosis by Judge Miller himself in a public court order (¶87–90)

These violations were:

• Raised in multiple filings

• Discussed in hearings (¶77)

• Detailed in a direct letter to Judge Miller (¶80)

• Repeated even after Judge Miller dismissed the concerns as “moot” (¶82, 86)

🔹 From Hearing Transcript (Doc. 544 – pp. 15–17):

Judge Miller aggressively questioned and implicitly reprimanded Plaintiffs’ attorney, Matthew Schaap, for including the judge’s [public information] in a sworn declaration. Key points:

• The information was public, already published in Judge Miller’s judicial disclosures.

• The judge repeated the question several times to emphasize his disapproval.

• He did not inquire into context or purpose, nor did he indicate that any rule had been violated.

🔹 From Judge Miller’s December 18, 2024 Order (Doc. 549):

• No mention is made of the protective order violations described by Marie Stevenson.

• The order defends the integrity of the court’s decision-making process and chastises Plaintiffs’ counsel for allegedly questioning the court’s authority.

• Judge Miller gives no explanation for failing to sanction or even address documented breaches of confidentiality that harmed Marie.

⚖️ ANALYSIS: SIGNIFICANCE OF THE CONTRAST

1. Disparate Treatment of Parties

Judge Miller responded to a minor procedural detail—the inclusion of publicly available information about himself—with a public reprimand. Meanwhile, he:

• Ignored repeated, deliberate violations of a court-issued protective order

• Minimized traumatic conduct by calling Sean Stevenson’s actions a mere “petty oppression,” despite evidence that Sean mailed 25 pages of private emails to Marie’s known abuser, after being told of her past trauma and after witnessing a panic attack

This gross disparity suggests a bias in favor of the Defendants, and it supports the appearance that Judge Miller treated the Plaintiffs more harshly and held them to a different standard.

2. Failure to Protect Confidentiality and Uphold Court Orders

Protective orders are designed to prevent exactly what occurred here: the weaponization of private, sensitive information. The judge’s failure to enforce his own order—and his own public disclosure of Marie’s cancer diagnosis (¶87–90)—undermines public confidence in the court’s ability to enforce protections equitably and seriously.

3. Impartiality and Judicial Ethics (Rule 2.11(A), Minn. Code of Judicial Conduct)

Under Rule 2.11(A), a judge must disqualify themselves if their impartiality might reasonably be questioned. Here:

• The judge appeared more concerned with personal offense than with the psychological and legal harm to a litigant

• His responses favored one side’s procedural comfort (his own) over the substantive rights of a vulnerable party

This gives rise to a reasonable perception of bias, especially in light of the judge’s repeated inaction regarding defense misconduct.

4. Due Process Implications

The due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment requires fundamental fairness and impartial adjudication. Judge Miller’s decision to chastise a party over public information while failing to address privacy breaches and protective order violations may be interpreted as:

• Retaliatory or arbitrary

• Undermining the fairness of proceedings

• Reflecting prejudgment or hostility toward one side

5. Undermining Trust in Judicial Integrity

The judicial system depends on the perception and reality of neutrality. A judge who punishes an attorney for disclosing [public information]—information he made public—while refusing to reprimand or sanction parties who published another’s medical records and deeply personal history in open court sends a chilling message: the judge’s own comfort is prioritized over the safety and dignity of litigants.

🧾 CONCLUSION

Judge Miller’s reprimand of Plaintiff Craig Stevenson’s attorney for disclosing a public fact about the judge, contrasted with his repeated refusal to address documented protective order violations, reveals a disturbing imbalance. This selective enforcement of court norms and disregard for Plaintiff Marie Stevenson’s privacy, dignity, and mental health supports allegations of judicial bias, due process violations, and a failure to maintain the impartiality required by Minnesota’s judicial conduct rules. These discrepancies should be scrutinized not only on appeal but potentially in disciplinary forums as well.